His voice is so raw, all hard edges and pain. He just stares at me as if waiting for me to damn him for it, bracing himself for another blow to come his way when he’s already dealt with so many in his life.
“Cool, less in-laws to meet in the future then.”
I skip on, letting him see how absolutely unfazed I am at his words. Sure, I want to burn the shit out of the men that hurt him, but he doesn’t need me to protect him. He needs someone to show him it’s okay to forgive himself and be there for him until he can get to that point. He needs people to lean on and love him, because he hasn’t had nearly enough in his life.
“How can you just skip off like it's fine? Like you didn’t just hear you’re tying yourself to someone that’s fucked up?” he spits, and I’m glad.
I’m glad he’s getting it all out. Let his anger burn away every last bit of pain so it can be replaced by something better.
“As you so frequently point out, I’m a bit of a psycho myself. You killed people that hurt you, that deserved it. Me? I’ve let people die so I could win a race.” I shrug. “Really, you’re the one that should be running away screaming. I use corpses like step stools, so forgive me if I don’t care that some abusive assholes died.”
I stop walking after a minute when I get the sense that they aren’t following me. I look over my shoulder; Cai’s wearing an inscrutable expression, Soren has a soft smile, and Yri has a broad grin that reaches all the way to his dark, red eyes.
“Called it; pay up.” Yri holds his palm out and Soren drops a ten dollar bill in it.
“Called what?” I fully turn to face them now, confused.
Soren elaborates, “When Cai started talking, Yri and I made bets over how you’d react. I bet that you’d accept it easily, but end up kissing him.”
Yri chimes in, “And I bet that you’d throw your own body count back in his face.” He tucks the money in his pocket, adjusts his bag, and approaches me with an extra pep in his step, kissing me quickly. “I knew from the first moment I saw you that you were perfect for us, angel.”
Cai is still staring like he can’t make heads or tails of me. “Coming or what, newblood?” I taunt, winking at him. “Or just going to stare at my ass all day?”
He shakes his head, an amused breath slipping out as he shakes off his confusion and gets back to walking. “I’m going to go for both; I’m a why choose kind of man.”
I snicker, falling into step with Yri, Soren and Cai at my back. “I’m a why choose kind of gal, myself. Looks like we’ll get along famously.”
***
Holy fuck I’m dying.
“Holy fates, why do I feel like I’m in Hell?”
As soon as the words are out, I realize with horror that I’m hot.Hot.Heat doesn’t bother me; never has. But whatever that asshole injected me with still hasn’t worn off and now, surrounded by a pile of bodies, my skin feels like it’s going to melt off.
I clamber out from the dragon pile, unzipping the tiny tent and get blasted with fresh air. I take several deep breaths, feeling immensely better physically, but emotionally? I’m terrified.
What if Soren’s theory is wrong and I never get my abilities back? What if it prevents me from shifting? What if I can, but I have no fire? Wouldn’t that be some shit.
“You’re thinking too loud,” Yri jokes, climbing out of the tent to stand beside me. “Everything okay?”
I almost say fine, just pretend that everything’s okay for simplicity’s sake. I know that voicing my worries won’t do a lick of good and that they aren’t anything the others haven’t already thought of. But I don’t, figuring maybe if I voice them out into the world, prove they’re real, they’ll become a living entity I can slay and move on.
Vyrian sits down in the grass, leaning back on his hands and gazing up at the evening sky, dawn still too far on the horizon to illuminate much. “And if so, then we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
I love that for once, someone’s acknowledging the possibility instead of just pretending everything will work out. I sit down beside him, adopting an identical pose.
“What if it sabotaged however the ritual works and none of us shift, even you guys?”
“Can’t really miss what you’ve never had, angel,” he states so easily. “Would it be awesome if it happened? Heck yeah. Will it ruin our lives if it doesn’t?” He turns to face me, his eyes bleeding sincerity. “Absolutely not. We never expected to find a mate in our lives, Ezra. And we’re here for you, not for the power boost.”
I flop onto my back, folding my arms beneath my head and looking up at the sky that’s spent twenty-three years taunting me. “Still.”
He chuckles, lying down beside me. “Still.”
We stay out there the rest of the night, dozing and waiting for the others to wake up. It’s only a few hours, but I get better sleep than before; less weighted down with concerns. Absolutely nothing changed and nothing was resolved, but I’m able to breathe easier.
“It really just doesn’t make any sense,” Cai argues as we curve around the outskirts of the next town. “Dragons are drawn to heat.”
